When soft tissue such as a ligament or a tendon becomes detached from a bone, surgery is usually required to reattach or reconstruct the tissue. Often, a tissue graft is attached to the bone to facilitate regrowth and permanent attachment. Techniques and devices that have been developed generally involve tying the soft tissue with suture to an anchor or a hole provided in the bone tissue. Knotless suture anchors, such as the two piece Arthrex PushLock® anchor, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,329,272, have been developed to facilitate tissue fixation to bone.
There is a need for knotless suture anchor constructs with improved design that allows tensioning of the tissue after implantation of the suture anchors. Also needed are improved technologies for knotless fixation of soft tissue with easier suture management and increased tensioning of the tissue.